A little over two and a half years ago, the time had come: after 30 years in the Bundesliga, FC Schalke 04 had to travel to an away game in the second division for the first time again. Remember?

On April 20, 2021, the time had come. After the 0-1 defeat at Arminia Bielefeld, FC Schalke 04’s relegation was finally sealed.

30 years after the last crash into the second-highest German division, the miners had to go down again. The fans were left between grief and anger. An absolute disaster season came to an end.

The start of the 2021/22 season in League Two saw Königsblau lose 1-3 at home to Hamburger SV. The next game was away again, and the first victory of the new season came at Holstein Kiel. Simon Terodde was the match winner in the 3-0 victory. His brace and Marius Bülter’s goal sealed the first three points of a season that subsequently turned out to be a highly successful one.

Schalke 04 managed to get back into the Bundesliga with the interim team around Mike Büskens in dramatic fashion against FC St. Pauli (May 7, 2022), making the hearts of the fans beat faster again. The path back to the Bundesliga was cleared at the first attempt.

In the meantime, FC Schalke 04 has experienced another year and a half of turmoil. It was not until the 34th matchday of the 2022/23 season that it was confirmed that the club had been relegated from the Bundesliga again. Königsblau lost 2-4 at RB Leipzig, plunging them into the depths of the league once more.

After seven games in the new 2nd division season, coach Thomas Reis also had to pack his bags again on September 27, 2023. With only two wins from seven games and 16th place, the club decided to make a change on the coaching bench. Since then, Karl Geraerts has been in charge, and things are still not going quite smoothly for the Gelsenkircheners.

It’s February 6, 2024. Schalke’s next away game takes the Royal Blues to Kiel. The same place where the last trip began. The omens look completely different this time. Holstein Kiel are in third place. Meanwhile, Schalke were only able to move away from the relegation place of 16th with their victory over Eintracht Braunschweig and are faltering in 14th place. The roles have been reversed. The 3-0 from 2021 is long gone.